


Godhood Can’t Be Halved

by thief_apprentice



Category: Descendants (Disney Movies)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Descendants 3 Spoilers, Eventual Fluff, Found Family, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Major character death - Freeform, More tags to be added, Personal Sacrifice, Rating May Change, world building, written at night on my phone
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-06
Updated: 2019-08-06
Packaged: 2020-07-31 16:56:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,484
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20118448
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thief_apprentice/pseuds/thief_apprentice
Summary: Godhood can be given, earned, and inherited. It can be seized and stolen. It cannot, however, be watered down through a bloodline. You either have it, or you don’t.ORThe ember wouldn’t ever work for Mal like it did her father. The only reason it responded to her call at all was the fae magic running through her veins from her mother. It’s power wouldn’t resonate with her soul unless she was a full child of Hades. After revealing her betrayal and having her friends turn their backs on her, Mal knows she’ll need to make another decision, this time without a chance to change her mind. Uma won’t help her and there’s no one left to ask, so Mal has to change her very nature to save Auradon, but, more importantly, to save her friends—her family.ORMal never meant for this to happen, but she’d let go of everything to see it fixed.~This is essentially becoming a series of oneshots that may or may not be expanded upon, but all explore a darker side of Mal’s magic and the Isle~





	1. Sacrifice (Pt. 1)

**Author's Note:**

> Again, I just finished the movie about twenty minutes before writing this on my phone directly on the website. If you guys like it I’ll edit and expand on it after I sleep, but I just needed to get this out. Hope you like the idea if nothing else.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mal only had one choice left. Uma’s left her in the dust, which, while deserved, means it’s up to her. She needs to fix this, no matter the cost.

Mal cradled Evie’s face and cried. She glanced at Ben, and Jay, and Carlos and felt horrible. While Ben might’ve understood her choice, it didn’t change the fact that she had lied to her FAMILY. She had betrayed their trust, there was nothing else to it. And now they were turned to stone, the ember was drained, and there was nothing her magic could do.

She remembered wondering when she was young why her father had never come to visit. Mal knew when Hades had said the ember would never work fully for her, that she was only “half a god,” it had been purely for Celia’s benefit. She wasn’t a god at all. When a god—Hades, in this case—sired a child with a mortal the resulting babe was either all or nothing. With the combination of Isle and barrier magic affecting her conception and birth, the only magic in Mal’s veins was the royal fae bloodline. Powerful in its own right, yes, but nothing compared to godhood. Nothing, in the face of Audrey’s use of the scepter.

Mal had to make another decision. She had screwed up the last one so bad she wished there was another option. There would be no turning back from this, no changing her mind. But there was no option. Uma was a non-starter and had already made her choice. Celia was a child, and everyone else was turned to stone. Mal needed to be able to fully use the ember.

Godhood can’t be halved, but it can be awakened. Her genetics gave her an “in” if nothing else. She just needed to accept it.

So, with tears running down her face at the thought of a future changed, Mal spoke the words that would damn her fate:

Stone of power, stone of souls,  
Hear this daughter’s call.  
Gift to me my father’s realm,  
So I can take the fall.  
Change me now, into unknown,  
Take me to his hall.  
For it is time to let them go,  
So I can save them all.

With those quiet words the empty ember glowed bright, and a dark shadow fell from overhead. An unearthly crack filled with blue flames opened under Mal’s feet. Time slowed and ancient power soared from the heavens to the hells, bringing the attention of every conscious soul to its presence deep in the woods. Uma and Harry ran into the clearing just in time to see Mal fall, the ground sealing up behind her in an unnatural scar.


	2. Surrender (Pt. 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What if Uma didn’t jump in to help Mal fight Audrey in time? What would’ve happened instead?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edited for clarity, correct character placement, and continuation 8/6/19

Audrey was too strong for Mal without Hades’ Ember. Uma was right, she didn’t stand a chance. She was going to lose.

Audrey’s attacks only grew stronger as the fight drew on, pulses from the Scepter tearing at Mal’s dwindling magic. Mal didn’t dare breathe fire in fear of hurting Celia, and every wasted moment just served to weaken her more. She couldn’t keep going at this rate. Audrey was going to win.

Mal’s wings shook. Her fae powers faded remarkably fast in the face of her mother’s scepter wielded by an evil heart. With a wisp of smoke and a whimper, Mal retook her human form. Her hair disheveled, wisps sticking to her sweat covered face, Mal breathed heavily as she lay on the ground. The vibrant purple and blue of her hair faded, turning more and more grey by the second. Her leathers had lost their luster and had become torn.

“I told you I’d win! You can’t do anything, Mal! You’ve lost! You’re nothing! You will _never_ be queen! I AM QUEEN! There’s no one left to help you this time! You’ve been abandoned by those you betrayed. Oh, the irony! This is the end,” Audrey taunted, a cruel smirk gracing her insane features. Celia huddled in the corner of the tower, terrified at what she saw—and the fact there was nothing she could do to help.

Mal shakily stood to her feet, face wan and pale, with skin stretched too tight over her features. Her hair hung limp across her shoulders. She looked drained, lifeless.

“Congrats Audrey,” she spoke softly, as if she couldn’t speak any louder, “Looks like you’ve won. What are you going to do now? The kingdom you so desired is either asleep, turned to stone, or a villain locked behind a barrier. What’s there left for you to rule?

“Nothing. Absolutely nothing. If you wake them up, they’ll hate you. If you make them forget, well, no spell lasts forever. They’ll remember eventually, and turn against you. You’ll never be the real queen, just a dictator. That’s the truth about being a villain, it never gets you anywhere at the end of the day.” Mal smiled, a broken thing that stretched her face into a twisted grimace. 

Audrey shrieked with rage at being called out. Uma and Harry ran into the courtyard just in time to see her let out a bolt of pink and green lightning straight towards Mal’s heart.

Everything happened quickly after that. Uma screamed in shock, Harry let out a yell of rage, and Celia started crying harder. They were mad at Mal, but didn’t want her dead. They’d lashed out in the face of her reveal, yes, and Celia had made a rash decision destroying the ember, but they’d never wanted this to happen. If only they’d been able to keep their tempers in check. Uma and Harry started to run towards Mal in an attempt to help, hoping they were in time to make a difference.

It was pointless though. The lightning hit Mal’s chest and seemed to disappear. Her mouth opened in a silent scream as Audrey’s laughter filled the courtyard. She fell backwards, and Harry scrambled to catch her before she hit the cobblestone. Uma sent out a blast of pure, instinctual power with her necklace to create a shield around them, and desperately cradled Mal’s head and Harry held her tight.

They were too late. The made-worthless ember fell from Mal’s grasp and clinked hauntingly against the worn stone, its dim nature accusing Uma, Harry, and Celia for their actions.

A single tear ran down Mal’s cheek as she shakily breathed. Her fingers twitched with shock and pain after Audrey’s strike, muscles locking and relaxing as they pulsed with unnatural energy. 

“I’m so sorry, Mal,” Uma whispered to the dying girl. “This is my fault. If I hadn’t been so stubborn—”

“If _we_ hadn’t been so stubborn,” Harry interrupted, unusually solemn. “This is all our faults. We should’ve forgiven you. You—”

“Were just scared for yourself. We should’ve realized that and not been so hurt. We never should have left you to deal with this alone. We were supposed to watch your back.” Uma finished. The captain and her first mate looked anguished. They had cared about the girl in their arms for years, despite all the fighting they’d had over time. 

Mal didn’t respond, just silently cried another tear (only the second anyone had ever seen run down her face, she had always been too strong to cry in front of someone else), and started to close her eyes. Harry clutched her to his chest as her breathing stopped, his own tears leaking out. _Where was her crew? Where was Ben?_ the three pirates thought. _Why weren’t they here to help her?_

Audrey interrupted their mourning with another cackle. 

“Well, there’s your queen!! Dead on the ground, because of **_me_**. I win! Ha! What are you going to do now?” she gloated. 

Uma rose in sheer anger, and with a scream of choked rage, cast a spell the likes of which hadn’t been seen from the Shell in many years, which stole Audrey’s voice and sent her tumbling backwards. Harry gently laid Mal on the ground before standing behind his captain in the face of this villain. Celia took Audrey’s distraction as a chance to scurry down the tower, and ran behind the pair for safety. 

Uma’s spell didn’t last long, the combined power for the Scepter and the Crown overwhelmed the necklace’s power like it was nothing. But it scared Audrey to realize she wasn’t untouchable despite Mal being dead, and she shouted:

“This isn’t the end! I’ll be back soon! Mal can’t save you any more! The kingdom is mine now! _I’ll be_ _back_!”

.

.

.

Too focused on Audrey and her warning, no one noticed when Hades’ Ember began to pulse again. It’s glow grew from nothing to a spark, to a flame, to a true ember of power. One moment it was a worthless piece of glass lying on the stones, and the next it was an ancient relic of power clutched in Mal’s dead hand. Between one beat and the next, it was gone.

By the time anyone turned around, both Mal and the ember were nowhere to be seen.

.

.

.

”Wher’ di’ Mal’s body go?”

”That **_bitch_**! _Audrey_!!”

”No! Mal!”

.

.

.

”...guys? What happened?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave requests in the comments if you have an idea. I’ve watched the movie again and there’s a lot to explore plot-wise, so if you guys like any of these a lot I’ll continue them. Once I add a second installment to any of these ideas I’ll probably reorder the story so they’re continuous, if you’d prefer that. Leave a kudos so I know you guys like it!!

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry for any errors in grammar, and sorry it’s so weird and short. It felt like a fever dream as I wrote it, but I’ll probably add something more soon. Leave a comment with any questions or ideas!


End file.
